Task 15 – 3 TPE, 3 TPE Total.
Trivia verification: JoeK

Task 17 – 2 TPE, 5 TPE Total
Milestones – Claim 2. Milestones

Task 12 – 4 TPE, 9 Total

a. The salt special: Do these teams deserve to be here? Or were they gifted a trip to the finals through puck luck and bullshittery?
These teams definitely deserve to be here. It’s not a matter of puck luck or “bullshittery” either. They just have both figured out ways to keep a fantastic core intact despite the changes in cap restraints and whatever else came there way. And since all you need in FHM to be good is to have a lot of TPE, here we are. (62)

b. Buffalo has been here many times in the past 20 seasons, this is only the second (I think I'm too lazy to check) time for Chicago. Which is more impressive? The continued dominance of Buffalo? Or the solid couple of runs Chicago has made despite the team only being 15 seasons old?
Continued success is always more impressive than anything else. But to be clear, Buffalo’s success didn’t begin to happen until S46, when they won the cup for the first time, and was also Chicago’s first season of existence. The main part of the Buffalo run has been during Chicago’s 15 years, and they’ve outclassed them significantly during it. (58)

c. Everyone's a critic: Nitpick one thing about either team's logo, jersey, rink design, goal horn, or general site demeanor.
I think the easy bet would’ve been to nitpick about Buffalo’s site attitude not too long ago, but I think its fair to say they’ve reigned it in and are pretty good peeps. So if I have to pick something else, I can always pick Chicago’s logo. It’s just “okay”. I don’t know, the Syndicate never did much for me, and it was used in other places. I feel like Chicago could have something cooler. (75)

d. Who is the best player to play for either team? Is it a current player? Retired? Traded? Make your case.

The best player to play for the Buffalo Stampede was Joe Kurczewski. While he wasn’t there long, Joe K was a first ballot hall of famer, and he won 5 cups over his career. Not to mention he won an MVP, and other trophies as well. Plus, he’s the league’s all time leading playoff scorer, and he did that without having the benefit of the inflated scoring in FHM for most of his career. Easily the best player to don the Stampede sweater. (83)

Task 1 – 3 TPE, 12 Total

Xavier Doom had the usual ups and downs during the season, but we’re going to focus on the bright spots. Fresh off a Rookie of the Year win, Doom played very well yet again despite New Orleans being even less talented this season. The team is starting to gel together, and while we’ll still lose 10-0 on occasion, we can still put it together and beat Hamilton too. We hit our Casino over for the second straight year, which is a sign that we’re overcoming the league’s expectations. As Doom (and the team) grows, there’s just a bright future ahead that’s going to continue to get better and more fun, regardless of outside distractions. Doom really enjoys hanging out with his teammates during the season, and even though we lose more than we win for now, we keep it positive and flowing in the right directions. Our “promising prospect pool” is now flooding the SHL more each season, and its only a matter of time before we’re in the playoffs again. (171)

Task 5 – 2 TPE, 14 Total

Having 12 SMJHL teams is pretty cool, as it really makes the J pop. I understand the reasoning behind letting all of the teams into the playoffs. Believe me, I’m one of the ones that pushed for it so long ago. The reasoning then was that the offseason was so long (seriously) that people who didn’t make the playoffs would get bored from being off so long and as a result go inactive. The “everyone makes the J playoffs” move was to initially curb that. Now that our offseasons are really fast in comparison, there is no need to keep going with allowing everyone in the playoffs. It makes the regular season meaningless. The best times are the last few sims during a “make the playoffs” battle. It’s something that we’ve lost in the J. The J is in a MUCH better spot now that player retention isn’t an issue as it used to be. (155)

Task 13 – 2 TPE, 16 Total

The Buffalo Stampede came down from a 3-1 series deficit to win the Challenge Cup in a surprising fashion over Chicago. Both teams are really stacked, but this series, and playoffs, came down to one person putting the team on their back and carrying them to the Cup. Lizzie Doyle was yet again amazing in the playoffs, leading the goalies in just about every category. She had the most shutouts (3) and she lead the finals in GAA and Save %, performing tremendously in Game 6’s overtime win as well. In a series full of superstars, her outperforming Mat Smith on all levels is why Buffalo has the cup. (109)